A Happy Weekend to you! Michael and I are currently on the road heading to St. Petersburg, Florida for our final monthly Florida trip. We have an exciting day planned – one full of Dalí, tacos, and beer (basically: a perfect day). It’s excellent timing, too, as I’m coming out of a really busy period at work and it will be nice to focus on the day ahead.
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This week didn’t lend itself to tons of online reading, but there are still some gems in here if you have a little time to kill:
Travel
Should you visit Paris right now?
…And if you do go, here are five coffee shops to visit (save me a coffee from Télescope, won’t you?).
Airbnb was my lodging of choice for the longest time, but hotels offer a lot of perks, too (even if you’re not staying in them!).
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Food
Here are the 50 most popular Trader Joe’s items of all time – my favorite (Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups) made the list, did yours?
Yum… these Norwegian crisp breads look delicious!
Pete Wells released his top ten NYC restaurant picks of 2018.
I guess someone can’t take a joke, jeez.
What’s the most dangerous food of all time? After trying durian candy the other day, I can see it’s a real contender…
Fun fact: I used to be an obsessive home-baker, and while I still love to bake cookies at the holidays, I’m not quite as cookie-crazy as these “cookiers” (though I was one of twelve finalists in IKEA’s cookie contest a few years back for baking those guys below). These days I keep things simple by making large quantities of dough and limiting my decorations to simple designs.
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Life & Style
How to dress up the things you already have for the holidays.
Mama-to-be Elaine shares her pregnancy essentials here.
ABLE is offering 12 days of holiday deals, but rather than releasing one deal per day they have released them all at once (shipping is free, too!). These stacking rings would be a great filler gift!
Things I bought this week:
Is it weird that I share these things here? I primarily do it because it holds me accountable; any dollars spent on things are dollars not spent on travel. With the holidays ahead the money outflow is a lot heavier than usual, but the good news is I’ve finished all of my holiday shopping! There were a couple of unexpected purchases this week for myself (whoops) thrown in the mix, though. Everlane dropped a surprise $20 credit in my account, so I combined it credit from returns to order a few things. The Men’s Cotton Pocket Tee in the “Choose What You Pay” sale is the perfect gift for my Dad, so I snapped one up. I also picked up a Cashmere Crew in Frost Donegal (I know I said I’m nearly sweatered-out, but I do love the subtle pattern here) and the Straight Leg Crop to try out. A month ago I ordered the Authentic Stretch High Rise Skinny Jeans in my usual size, but they were a bit too big. I’m hoping one size down will do the trick. I’ve given up on cheap candles after a West Elm candle exploded on my dresser, but I still don’t like to spend a ton of money on them. Hopefully, this Santal Candle will be just fine. My most expensive purchase this week was also unexpected, but it’s an item I’ve been pining over for about a year now. Once Elizabeth Suzann opened up the Market garments for email requests, I sent in an email with my fingers crossed that the mules by Sevilla Smith would be available. The next morning, I received an email stating they were, and now they’re on their way to me! My gifts for my family are generally small, as I spend several days baking cookies and other goodies as gifts. For my aunt, I ordered this Minimergency Kit (similar to the one I linked in my gift guide), as it’s a very practical gift (my favorite!). I heard word from Santa that my brothers would receive a ping pong table this Christmas, so I found a vendor on Etsy who engraves paddles and picked up a custom set for them. Lastly, while my fast-fashion days are numbered, I’m struggling to find a good white tee; this one from Uniqlo has great reviews, and if I’m happy with the fit and quality I will keep it.
Have you ever won anything in a contest, large or small?
